Summary: Remember when Tony told Ziva he couldn't live without her when they rescued her? Well, this is kind of a variation on the theme. The challenge is to write a story about two of the main cast where one can't live without the other but not in a romantic context. The challenge is to figure out why the character you're writing about can't live without one of the others and not be in love with him or her.

Characters: Any that are listed as the main cast. You may use recurring characters as necessary to tell the story but they shouldn't be the focus. You can use main characters that have left the show, i.e. Kate, Ziva or Jenny Shepherd, but if you do, the story has to be set in the seasons in which they appeared on the show.

For the sake of this challenge, you may not use Tony/Ziva since Tony telling Ziva he can't live without her inspired this challenge and is already done on the show.

Genre: Any except romance, supernatural, horror and crack.

Crossovers: No, not even with other NCIS shows since geographical distance counts as living without them.

Rating: Any.

Words: Minimum: 500, no maximum.

Stories: You can write as many stories for this as you would like as long as they are noticeably different from the others. Don't basically write the same story and just swap out names.

Other Challenges: You may enter a story for another challenge as long as that challenge giver is okay with it but regular karma rules apply.

Note: There will be no extensions given on this challenge so please plan accordingly if you wish to participate. My late summer/early fall is going to be busy beyond this date and my free time will be limited so just a heads up.

Author:Mae34Rating: FR7Summary: Being the only child of an absentee father, Tony never really knew of the pain that came with family ties. Tim could have warned him (he didn't). Ziva should have warned him (she did).

But there Tony goes, trying to find connections and love in far away lands.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.